Camp Average

Starred review from March 15, 2019
A new administrator's efforts to remake an easygoing boys' sports camp into an athletic powerhouse meet spirited resistance.Loosely branded as a sports camp, Camp Avalon (aka Camp Average), unlike its better-funded competitors, doesn't specialize in one sport. While directors annually remind campers about its sole baseball tournament win (1951), many activities aren't competitive or even sports--until director Winston takes charge, canceling traditional events and activities and banning hot dogs and sugary cereals. After exhaustive athletic-aptitude testing, each camper is assigned a sport, which they'll spend all day, every day, playing. Eleven-year-old Mack Jones, white, and Andre Jennings, a dark-skinned, talented pitcher, both land baseball, as does Nelson Ramos, YouTube celebrity toy-and-game reviewer, a baseball newbie with awesome hand-eye coordination. Winning trumps all: Poor test results consign brainy, well-liked Miles to keeping score and maintaining statistics. Led by Mack, who misses water-skiing, the kids rebel, spectacularly losing games against other camps. As Winston doubles down, adding "boot camp" practice, war escalates. The athletes grow dispirited--losing intentionally is still losing--but then Miles makes a discovery. Mack and friends are endearing, authentic tweens, their bond transcending sports. Camp, campers, and counselors (default white, with names conveying cultural diversity for the most part) are portrayed with unsentimental affection. Sports journalist Battle, past editor of Canadian children's magazine Owl, brings a sharp, satirical eye to trends benign and otherwise in children's sports.Hilarious, irreverent, and timely, highly recommended for sports fans, summer-camp alums, and preteen-years survivors. (Fiction. 8-13)

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May 1, 2021

Gr 4-7-In the third book in the "Camp Average" series, friends Andre, Mack, and Miles are split up one summer. Andre and Mack end up at the Camp Killington, a prestigious baseball camp, as a result of a bet. Campers from Camp Hortonia, including new kid Garth, took their beds at Camp Avalon, affectionately called Camp Average by its campers, while renovations are being done at the hockey camp. And Miles, missing his buddies Andre and Mack, tries to figure out ways to get them back to their rightful camp. A variety of ideas and pranks lead up to a hockey challenge between Camp Average and Camp Hortonia. On the line is removing Garth from their cabin and getting their friends back. The campers at Camp Average aren't known for their sports skills, but this group of underdogs work together to try to win. The cast of characters is large and tough to keep track of at times, and the plot, which moves back and forth between camps, could be confusing. While the author does give some explanation of what happened in previous summers, newcomers would benefit from starting with the first book. VERDICT An additional purchase in places where summer camp stories are popular.-Sarah Polace, Cuyahoga P.L. Syst., OH

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2021
Anticipating another happy summer at their (mostly) easygoing, co-ed sports camp, their friends are dismayed that Mack and Andre have chosen rival Camp Killington instead in this third series entry. Selfless reasons prompted the two to switch to the chilly baseball meritocracy with its country-club ambience. While stellar athletes like Andre are awarded private rooms with hotel amenities; less-stellar campers like Mack are housed in dorms. Hypercompetitive Killington coaches know Andre's talents, yet opportunities to play are few. Roused at night to mow a croquet pitch, he and Mack wonder if Killington's resident star, the nephew of an influential Hall of Famer, is responsible. When, without notice, Mack is dispatched to Camp Average, he discovers his cabin's full, now housing boys from Camp Hortonia who nurse grudges against their hosts. Intracabin friction culminates in an ill-advised bet between Average and Hortonia, to be settled by a game of ball hockey. Average's far weaker team needs every player--even ball-hockey nonenthusiast Mack. Coached by team captain Cassie, with tech support and camper/videographers Nelson and Wi-Fi on hand to document everything, Mack swallows his humiliation and works on his game. If the plot occasionally strains credulity, the narrative shines when depicting the sports alchemy that transforms diverse young players of varying athletic interests and abilities into a whole greater than the sum of its parts. An exuberant celebration of playing as a team. (Fiction. 8-12)

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